UNITE is calling on the Aqua Restaurants Group to stop exploiting staff following reports that they are being forced to “pay to work.”

Staff at Aqua Italia in Bristol told the union that, after every shift, they were required to hand over 3 per cent of their total table sales to the management, either from tips or from their own pockets if they had failed to make enough from customers.

A copy of the restaurant’s employment contract states: “A requirement of this method is that 3 per cent of your key fob sales are given back to the company at the end of every shift, once you have cashed up.”

The contract also states that staff must provide the bar and kitchen team with 10 per cent of whatever they earn in tips.

Unite regional officer Dave Turnbull said: “We’re hearing reports that one young waitress was forced by her manager to go to a cash point to take money out to cover her shift.

“The company needs to clarify whether this is a policy across the board or a local incident. Either way, it has to stop.”